How we eat out at posh restaurants but only pay HALF the price

A FOOD mad couple from London eat out twice a month at fancy restaurants but always pay half the price for their meals.
Eve Obasuyi and Nick Agwuncha, both 27, reckon they’ve saved £600 over the past 12 months by dining out at restaurants when they run a “soft launch”.
MoneyMedics Eve and Nick reckon they’ve saved at least £600 over the past year by eating out at soft launches
This is when food chains offer special money-off deals when they first open the doors in a bid to encourage new customers to try their services.
The pair, who’ve been dating for over three years, used to spend up to £120 combined eating out twice a week at high street chains like Nando’s and Wagamamas.
Now they eat three-course meals at posh restaurants like Black Roe in Mayfair, where mains can cost up to £38, for the same price.
“Before, we’d go to the same places and order the same things on the menu and still spend £30 each,” Eve told The Sun. “Now, we’re eating three-course meals at fancy restaurants for the same price.
MoneyMedics The couple used to dine at high street chain Nando’s and Wagamama every time they ate out
MoneyMedics Eve and Nick managed to get 50 per cent of brunch at Pachamama
Ashley, Nick’s sister, Nick and Eve eating out at a soft launch at Harlem Soul
“Yes, sometimes you do have to travel further to get to specific restaurants but we don’t see that as a bad thing because we’re trying new places that we’d never have chosen to go before.
“You have to be flexible with the days and dates too as soft launches are quite ad hoc – sometimes there aren’t any running at all and others are only run on specific days.
“The biggest savings we made was at Rum Kitchen in Brixton. They had an opening offer on for free main courses and a cocktail each so we ate and drank £43 worth of food for nothing.”
Nick first stumbled across these soft launches after Googling free things to do in London when the couple first started going out.
Eve and Nick’s top five savingsTHE couple have eaten out at some swanky restaurants for a fraction of the price by taking advantage of soft launch discounts. Here are some of their best savings:&nbsp;

Websites like Londonontheinside.com, softlaunchlondon.com and hot-dinners.com list all of the restaurants in the city that are running discounts on opening nights, some posher than others.
For example, when The Sun had a search, Mexican joint Pepitos in Hackney will be running 25 per cent off lunch until June 39, while Bao & Bing in Marylebone is offering 50 per cent off food until April 30.
We did struggle to find soft launches outside of the London though but there are plenty of websites to look out for that can help you save cash on food.
Restaurantsofliverpool.com is currently offering 50 per cent off the a la carte menu at celebrity chef Marco Pierre White’s Wheeler’s of St James’s, and firsttable.co.uk will tell you where to go for discounted food in Bristol.
The couple, along with Nick’s sister Ashley Agwuncha, have turned their cash saving tips into a blog called MoneyMedics and have started a newsletter highlighting London soft launches.
MoneyMedics The pair eat out around twice a month and almost always at a soft launch
MoneyMedics Restaurants often run discount deals when they first open to attract customers
“Sometimes the discounts last a day and other times they might go on for a week – only once have we eaten at the same place with the same discount,” Eve added.
“We probably eat out one or twice a month and we always go to a soft launch, whether it’s date night or if we’re catching up with friends.
“Nick even managed to book us into an expensive restaurant in Soho for his mum’s birthday on a soft launch.
“You should always check what’s on offer before deciding on where to eat – you could end up saving yourself a lot of money and you’ll eat at places you never even considered before.”
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Don’t forget to add on a tip when eating out at restaurants – although here we reveal the worst cities in the UK for tipping.
Chicken lovers who can’t tear themselves away from Nando’s can save money by buying the cheapest meal on the menu and saving up to £7.
Fast-food fans can get their hands on an array of “freebies” by joining loyalty schemes – but some require you to spend up to £45 just to get a deal. We rate the best loyalty schemes to get you the most bang for your buck.

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